U.S. vacuum-tube transportation firm attracts more investment

LAS VEGAS, May 11 — A U.S. high-tech startup said Tuesday it has successfully raised another USD 80 million to build a new transportation system called Hyperloop.

The Los Angeles-based company will put the money from the second round of financing into the world's first super-fast and vacuum-tube transportation system.

Business magnate Elon Musk brought out the concept of Hyperloop in 2013. The idea is to put people into special pods that move at more than 1,126 km per hour inside a partially pressurized enclosed track.

The company also announced that it will change its name from Hyperloop Technologies to Hyperloop One, to distinguish itself from another Hyperloop competitor — Hyperloop Transportation Technologies.

CEO Rob Lloyd called his company "the one that can deliver Hyperloop first," which "will make it possible to be anywhere, move anything, and connect everyone."

The name change came before the first open-air test of its propulsion system in North Las Vegas, Nevada on Wednesday.

Just a few days ago, the other company Hyperloop Transportation Technologies announced a licensing technology called "passive magnetic levitation" to power its own prototype. (PNA/Xinhua)